Improvement in furnace-feeding mechanisms



T. HENDERSQN.

FURNACE-FEEDING MECHANISM.

No.179,017. v Patented June20, 1876.

NPEITERS, PHUTO-LITHOGRAPHER, WASHINGTON. D. C.

rrnn STATES PATENT 'omea THOMAS HENDERSON, OF LIVERPOOL,ENGLAND,ASSIGNOR TO DILLWYN SMITH, OF BURLINGTON, NEW J EBSEY.

IMPROVEMENT IN FURNACE-FEEDING MECHANISMS.

Specificationforming part of Letters Patent No. 1 79,0 [7, dated June20, 1876; application filed January 20, 1676.

To altwhom'it may concern Be it known that I, THOMAS HENDERSON, ofLiverpool, England, mechanical engineer, have invented an ImprovedApparatus for Supplying Fuel to Furnaces, of which the following is aspecification My said invention relates to novel apparatus forautomatically supplying fuel to'steamboiler and other furnaces, where itis necessary or desirable that the quantity of fuel in the furnaceshould be uniform during the working of the same, and that the fuelshould be evenly distributed over the entire surface of the fire-bars.The said apparatus comprises rotating feeders, consisting of disksprovided with blades or beaters inclosed in a box'or case arranged infront of the furnace. The said box or case is supplied with fuel from ahopper furnished with crushing or grinding devices, and the blades orheaters throw the said fuel in a continuous stream into the furnace. Thesaid apparatus is provided with means for regulating the quantity offuel supplied to the furnace and its distribution in the same.

. My said invention is illustrated in the accompanying drawing, which Iwill now proceed to describe, and of which Figure l is a front elevationof a steam-boiler with my apparatus applied to the same. 'Fig. 2 is aside elevation of a portion of the said appa ratus. Fig. 3 is ahorizontal section on the line a: m, Fig. 1. Figs. 4 and 5 are verticaltransverse sections, drawn to an enlarged scale, on the lines y y and zz, Fig. 1.

Like letters indicate the same parts throughout the drawing.

A is the front of the boiler or fire-box. mm are hoppers for thereception of the coal. 1) b b are the boxes or cases inclosing theaforesaid rotating feeders. 0 0 are the blades or heaters of the saidfeeders, which are clearly shown in Fig. 3. By referring to thelast-named figare it will be seen that the two disks 0, which carrythese heaters, are arranged in close proximity to each other. Below thecases or boxes I) there is a horizontal shaft, 61, supported to turnfreely in bearings 1 1, and provided with friction wheels or rollers e,which project through the bottom of the said cases, and run in contactwith the said disks, thereby imparting motion to the same in thedirection of the arrows, Fig. 3. In practice, this shaft d is driven bya belt or shaft from the main shaft of the engine, or any other suitableshaft connected with the same, and thereby imparts to the said blades orheaters a rapid rotary motion. The cases b are provided withinspection-apertures, closed by doors b.

In the drawing I have shown the boiler constructed with three furnaces,each of which is fitted with my improved feeder; For driving the heatersof the feeder of the lower furnace I provide the said horizontal shaftwith bevel-toothed pinionsf, which gear with similar pinions g on thebeater-shafts, that extend up through the sleeves or necks h on the topof the lower case or box I). At the bottom of each .hopper is a chamber,6, inclosing the crusher j, which is a roller, k, with teeth formed asshown in Fig. 5, and arranged in combination with the adjustable plateI. This plate is hinged or pivoted at l, and is adjustable with regardto the said roller by means of the screw m and hand-wheeln. The rollersis are mounted on a horizontal shaft, 0, which extends through the chamhers i, and the shaft 0 receives a slow rotative motion through the wormor screw gearing p q r s, or by equivalent means.

In each of the hoppers a, above the said crushing device, I arrange aflap or door, t, which is suspended upon an axis or spindle, 25 whoseend projects through the side of the hopper, and is provided with aratchet-wheel, t, arranged in combination with the pawl t By means ofthis flap or door the passage or area through which the coal passes downthe hopper can be more or less contracted or diminished to regulate thesupply of coal to the crusher. The said door, when set in any requiredposition, is held fast by the said pawl and ratchet-wheel.

In applying my invention to a marine or land boiler-furnace, where thespace in front of the furnace is limited, the wheels 6 on the horizontalshaft d, if arranged as shown in the drawing, will obstruct the openingof the furnace-doors a. To obviate this difficulty I cut in the top ofthe doors'a apertures a, and to prevent the entrance of air into theseapertures when the doors are closed I provide the same with hingedcovers u which permit the said doors to open and close freely, and whichdrop down automatically over the said apertures when the doors areclosed.

I claim as my invention- 1, In an apparatus, for feeding furnaces, thecombination of the shaft d, extending across or partially across thefront of the furnace, and the friction-wheels. on said shaft, withrotating feeders resting on and driven by said friction-wheels, all asset forth. a

2. In an apparatus for supplying fuel to furnaces, the fuel-crushingdevice, consisting of the toothed roller 70 and plate land itsadjusting-screw, all combined and operating substantiallyias above setforth.

3. In combination with the disks 0', the shaft 0, carrying thecrushing-rollers k, and geared with the shaft d by the worms andwormwheels 1) q r s, as herein set forth, and for the purpose specified.

4. In combination with the rotating feeder, thehoppera, supported on orabove the case b, and provided with the'crushing-rollerk and adjustableplate Z, in combination with the flap or door t, for regulating thepassage of the fuel through the hopper, substantially as herein setforth and for the purposes specified.

5. The fuel-supply apparatus applied to the front of a boiler, andconsisting of the horizontal shaft d, the feeders above said shaft, andthe feeder or feeders below the same, arranged in combination with thehoppers a and crushing frictional or other wheels geared with the saidshaft, substantially as herein set forth.

6. The combination of the folding doors to, having aperturesu, with theself-closing covers M, as and for the purpose set forth.

THOMAS nnnonason.

devices 70 Z, and operated by

